Tennis of Justice
by greywing
Summary: Their newest member is a baby. Granted, he acts like he's eighty years old, but he's still twelve. And he's really intense about tennis. P5/Tenipuri Xover: 1st year middle schooler Tezuka joins (?) the Phantom Thieves. Set sometime in between Madarame's and Kaneshiro's palaces. Written under the influence of cold medication.


It happens by accident.

Like most of their troubles, it starts with a Phansite request.

"Bullies are the worst!" reads Mishima's impassioned message. "And they hurt a kid! The Phantom Thieves can't let this stand!" It's accompanied by a screenshot of the request:

"There's a first year in my club who's exceptionally good at tennis, and it makes the seniors jealous. A few of them have been really aggressive. I'm almost positive they injured his arm, though there's no evidence and the kid is being quiet about it. I'm worried it will escalate further. Please do something!

A concerned upperclassman "

The plea is followed by a list of three names. Apparently, they attend Seishun Academy, a middle school in Tokyo.

Morgana makes a face at that information, later, when they're all discussing the request at the hideout. "Even middle-schoolers can have such distorted hearts," he laments, tail flicking.

"Man, it's going to be so weird beating up kids," groans Ryuji. That earns him a hiss and smack from Ann, because they really should not be loudly proclaiming their intention to assault middle schoolers in the middle of a busy Shibuya walkway.

Though, Akira has to agree with the sentiment. Going after crooked adults and even his misguided peers is one thing, but there's just something not quite right about smiting students barely in their teens.

"As their elders, it is our duty to show our juniors the error of their ways," says Yusuke reasonably. Well then, that's fine. Akira can work with that.

They warp into Mementos from Shibuya station, not noticing their confused little stowaway.

They're navigating the labyrinthian depths when Morgana suddenly pipes up, hesitant, "I think I sense someone else here with us, in Mementos. Not a Shadow, a person."

The resulting echoes of "WHAT" and variations thereof shake the van, causing it to swerve violently and clip a Shadow from behind. The ensuing distraction (and cash) helps calm everyone down a little.

"Hey, what Mona mentioned earlier... do you think it's… the black-masked guy Madarame was talking about?" asks Ann with some trepidation as they get moving again.

"Could be," says Ryuji. "Mona, where is this guy?"

"I can't get a good reading." The van rattles with a distinctly feline rumble of frustration.

"Well, try harder!"

Akira has to break up the argument before they crash into a wall.

Eventually, Morgana locates their targets on one of the floors. "The other person I sensed is there as well," he hisses in surprise. "We should hurry."

They rush through the twists and turns of the tunnels and burst through the distortion only to find a bespectacled young boy, surrounded by three Shadows. He looks remarkably composed given the situation, though he's cradling his left arm, as if protecting it. The Shadows are circling him like vultures, pressing closer with each whispered threat.

Akira and his team move in to intervene, only to stop short as a blast of power sends the Shadows reeling. Glasses-Boy stands with his head held high, eyes glowing a familiar eerie yellow as wind and light swirl around him.

"You should be ashamed of yourselves," he admonishes. "I will show you the true meaning of tennis." He staggers as a hooded cowl obscures his face, but slowly straightens and rips it off with a ragged gasp.

" _Come, Tenkai Boshi!_ "

The explosion of light around Glasses-Boy slowly reveals his Persona, which takes the form of an armoured figure with an impressively crested helm, wielding … a sword that looks like a tennis racket? No, it's totally a tennis racket.

Tennis must be really intense, thinks Akira.

Glasses-Boy himself is now dressed like Generic NPC Bandit A from Generic Fantasy Videogame, in a dark green hood and cloak over a grey tunic. It's a far cry from everyone else's flashy styles.

The Shadows are regrouping, and Akira takes that as their cue to join the fray, giving the signal for Ann and Ryuji to join him while Yusuke and Morgana watch their backs. Glasses-Boy seems startled by their appearance, but relaxes fractionally when they put themselves between him and the Shadows.

They beat down the middle-schoolers-turned-monsters without too much difficulty. Glasses-Boy himself is no slouch either - he can take hits like a champ and has an impressive array of support skills- but he's flagging by the time the battle ends, clearly exhausted. Akira catches him by the waist, in true gentleman thief fashion, before he can crumple to the ground.

"We'd better get him out of here," advises Morgana, turning back into a van much to the bemusement of Glasses-Boy- whose name is Tezuka, apparently.

"Yeah, we'll explain everything later!" pipes in Ann, and they all bundle into the van.

Once outside the Metaverse, they take Tezuka-kun to the diner on Central Street, where they introduce themselves properly. When prompted, Tezuka reveals that he had been on his way to the bookstore when he overheard them mentioning his upperclassmen and merely stopped for a moment to listen when he found himself in the strange underground railway. He can't recall how, exactly, he ended up facing those Shadows of his upperclassmen while avoiding the rest.

"You were very lucky," says Morgana, sticking his round little face out of Akira's bag. "It could have ended badly."

Tezuka blinks once. "There is a cat, in your bag, and it is talking," he notes.

Akira decides it is a good time as any to explain things. He sticks with the basics- what Mementos is, what Shadows and Personas are.

"The Phantom Thieves," says Tezuka slowly, considering. His hands are wrapped around his mug of green tea. He reminds Akira more of a retiree than a middle-schooler. "So, 'stealing hearts' works by … correcting distorted perceptions… using metaphorical violence?"

"Huh?" says Ryuji.

"Yes," interrupts Akira, before anyone can start in again on Ryuji's intelligence, or lack thereof. "Will you keep it a secret?"

"No one would believe me," sighs Tezuka. He nods, resigned but serious. " I don't know if I approve of your actions, but I won't say a thing to anyone."

"You'd be a great asset to the team, as a Persona user. Why don't you join us?" suggests Morgana.

"He's twelve!" Ann points out.

"Age is but a number," says Yusuke, finally looking up from the basket of fries they'd ordered to share. "Tezuka-kun is quite mature for his age."

Yes, Akira had noticed that.

"It's your call," he tells Tezuka, who doesn't seem particularly enthused.

"I will think about it," he concedes, which sounds like ino/i to Akira. They all exchange contact information anyway (Tezuka has a _flip phone_ , how is that Metaverse app going to install itself?) and Ryuji walks him home, despite Tezuka's polite protests.

Later that evening, Akira receives a message that reads, "Thank you for your assistance today", and feels a warmth in his heart he's started to associate with each new bond formed.

Things will work out, he thinks, and smiles.

 **Lengthy Author's Note:**

Despite writing this, I feel like Tezuka is not a great fit for a Persona user in P5. He doesn't really have the motivation to awaken a Persona, I feel, not in the same desperate way the other main characters do. He'd probably be more suited as an alternate Tower Confidant. But anyway! Info about Tezuka as a potential party member:

Arcana: Tower

Persona: Tenkai Boshi (The Tiankui Star, Song Jiang), rebel leader of the 108 Stars of Destiny in The Water Margin/ Suikoden

Weapon: Bow and Arrow (wasn't there official art of him doing archery? :D)

Gun: Pair of derringers (small palm-sized pistols)

Costume: Stereotypical NPC Bandit (Tezuka has no imagination for things like this and it reflects in his Metaverse costume)

Type: Support tank ( a bit like Aigis's Pallas Athena in P3. He is a pillar of support okay.)

AoA Finisher line: You let your guard down.

It's been a while since I read the PoT manga, so I might be a little fuzzy on the details of Tezuka's injury.


End file.
